Open AccessBacterial adaptation to high pressure: a respiratory system in the deep‐sea bacterium Shewanella violacea DSS12
Author(s) -
Chikuma Sayaka,
Kasahara Ryota,
Kato Chiaki,
Tamegai Hideyuki
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2006.00555.x
Subject(s) - psychrophile , antimycin a , shewanella , biology , facultative , bacteria , microbiology and biotechnology , oxygen , hydrostatic pressure , oxidase test , biochemistry , food science , botany , chemistry , enzyme , electron transport chain , genetics , physics , organic chemistry , thermodynamics
Shewanella violacea DSS12 is a psychrophilic facultative piezophile isolated from the deep sea. In a previous study, we have shown that the bacterium adapted its respiratory components to alteration in growth pressure. This appears to be one of the bacterial adaptation mechanisms to high pressures. In this study, we measured the respiratory activities of S. violacea grown under various pressures. There was no significant difference between the cells grown under atmospheric pressure and a high pressure of 50 MPa relative to oxygen consumption of the cell‐free extracts and inhibition patterns in the presence of KCN and antimycin A. Antimycin A did not inhibit the activity completely regardless of growth pressure, suggesting that there were complex III‐containing and ‐eliminating pathways operating in parallel. On the other hand, there was a difference in the terminal oxidase activities. Our results showed that an inhibitor‐ and pressure‐resistant terminal oxidase was expressed in the cells grown under high pressure. This property should contribute to the high‐pressure adaptation mechanisms of S. violacea .